Our National Account Manger Ada Brewster called up drivers Laurie and Buz Scutt to get their view and story on what they see from the road during these times.
“We are doing something to help feed America.”
That is what Laurie Scutt said without hesitation when asked what she and her husband, Buz, were most proud of during the coronavirus pandemic that is hampering the country and the world. “We are proud to get people the things they need and depend on.”
As it has become even more clear over the past couple months, everyone depends on truck drivers to deliver the things that they need. Laurie and Buz Scutt have been depended on for a long time.
For Laurie, trucking runs in her blood. Her dad was a truck driver with a line of truckers going all the way back to her great grandfather. Laurie would often ride with her dad in the truck and on one of those trips that is where her driving career was born. When riding along one time, her dad became too ill to drive and it was up to Laurie to get them home. She hopped into the driver’s seat for the first time and, with instructions from her dad, got them home. Laurie’s father recovered and her own driving career had begun.
Laurie didn’t immediately become a full-time driver but kept it firmly on the backburner. Listening to advice from her dad, Laurie would drive occasionally every few years and kept her CDL up to date to make sure that she was ready to jump into that seat if she ever needed to do so.
Buz found himself behind the wheel at a young age, too. He started driving a hopper truck while working on the family farm. He would go on to join the military, but also kept his foot in the trucking world by picking up some work on the side driving at night or on weekends to make some extra money.
Flashforward a few years, divorces and children later, both Laurie and Buz found themselves driving truck as full-time gigs. Sixteen years ago, the two married and continued to drive separately for the first few years. They always arranged to meet at home on Saturdays to have a date night, go to church on Sunday morning, hopefully lunch that afternoon and then they went back out on the road in different rigs.
The pair didn’t team up at the beginning because of Buz’s daughter. Buz’s daughter was very sick at the time and he needed the ability to be able to get home at any moment. Sadly, Buz’s daughter did pass away leading the Scutt’s to the decision to start running as a team together 13 years ago now.
Today, with the coronavirus pandemic, the Scutt’s say they have seen changes in the way people treat each other. People now are fearing each other more, are not as friendly and are more standoffish than before. Laurie said she has encountered people who she has spoken to who won’t even muster out a greeting in response.
When delivering recently, the Scutt’s were in line to get unloaded and saw a pair of scammers trying to take advantage of the situation. The scammers, with clipboard in hand, claimed that they worked for the receiver and that drivers had to have $250 cash to get unloaded. The Scutt’s did not fall for this scam, but they saw others that weren’t so lucky.
Despite the bad, the Scutt’s say they still see more good than bad in people.
Normally the couple cooks in their truck (they gave a shout out to Kwik Trip for doing an awesome job keeping an assortment of fresh meats, fruits and vegetables in stock), but typically on Sunday’s they have a nice meal out. In just about every town they have found a restaurant to be very appreciative of their business when they call in to place an order. They ate at a Chili’s where the manager personally brought out the food to them and made sure it was fresh and hot. A Mexican restaurant in Gainesville, GA went above and beyond to make sure that they got exactly what they wanted delivered to their truck door.
Some shippers have done nice things for the Scutt’s during this time, too. When picking up a load at Boars Head in Grove Port, OH, along with their paperwork they were given two big plates filled with enough food for both to have two meals out of it. Several other shippers have given them snacks and water bottles and have treated them with respect and appreciation.
The Scutt’s appreciate the attitudes of shippers and receivers who are going out of their way to make the wearing of masks and required temperature checks not so bad to deal with.
When the pandemic is dealt with, the Scutt’s know exactly what they look forward to most: sitting down at a Mexican restaurant and having a big margarita.
Arkansas is home for the Scutt’s when they are not driving. They love spending time with their children and 15 grandchildren. When not feeding America, they love to take their fifth wheel camper and tour the country.
Ada Brewster can be reached at [email protected] and by phone at 320-510-0033.
Speak Your Mind